Harry Potter and the Summer of Snape
by HP United
Summary: Harry spends the summer after his sixth year at Hogwarts trying to find the truth behind Snape's motives. A final project for a class on Harry Potter at the University of Minnesota.


Sarah, Robyn, Mallory and Jennifer's Final Creative Project

Harry Potter and the Summer of Snape

As Harry Potter sat in the tense silence at number four Privet Drive, the thought crossed his mind that, perhaps, time had come to a complete stop. The dark-haired sixteen year old was waiting impatiently for the clock to read 3 o'clock but, much to his dismay, the hands were moving far too slowly. He shifted again in his seat on the living room couch. He had been getting progressively more restless as the afternoon lengthened, finally perching on the spotlessly clean flowered sofa upon which he couldn't seem to find a comfortable position. Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon were sitting in the same room, looking nervously about and watching Harry as if they expected him to burst into flames at any moment. Harry twitched again.

"Will you stop moving around!" Vernon roared.

Both Harry and Petunia jumped in their seats and Harry's cousin Dudley came waddling quickly into the room. Dudley loved to see Harry get yelled at.

Harry sat still as the clock moved from 2:54 to 2:55. Only five more minutes and he would be with the people that he cared about most in the entire world: his friends from school, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, along with the rest of the Weasley clan, and Remus Lupin and Nymphadora Tonks. Once they arrived, he could escape from his aunt and uncles' house once and for all.

Harry's thoughts darkened for a moment as he thought for what was perhaps the millionth time about the death of Dumbledore, and the reason he had given for Harry's return to the Dursleys' home. Apparently, returning to the home of his mother's sister would give him some crucial protection against Lord Voldemort. Despite the fact that Harry only returned to this place once a year, and only for a very short time, it was more than enough. Now, he could rejoin the people that actually enjoyed having him around.

_Two more minutes_, thought Harry as his uncle hoisted himself out of his armchair to stand near the door. Harry smiled to himself. He knew that his uncle did this in order to appear more threatening. It was a complete waste of time, of course. If any of his friends wished it, they could turn Vernon Dursley into any number of nasty things before he could even blink.

_One more minute._ Harry stood up, looking to where his trunk sat at the foot of the stairs. He was ready to go. He couldn't wait to get to Ron's house. It was Harry's second favorite place in the world to be, after Hogwarts. Another gloomy thought drifted across Harry's mind. He didn't even know of he would be returning to Hogwarts for his seventh and final year. He had other things to do now. With Dumbledore's death and Snape's betrayal, his life was now more than just homework and happy times at school. He had a mission, and he didn't know where it would take him.

The clock on the mantle chimed 3 o'clock. Harry paced the floor. Vernon and Petunia were both looking rather pale, and Dudley had taken off up to his room the moment the clock had struck the hour. It had amused Harry to see how frightened his cousin was of his friends nearly as much as it amused him to see Dudley need to take a break half-way up the staircase. Suddenly, there were four loud popping noises. Vernon shouted and threw himself onto his wife, trying to protect her. Petunia was looking a bit squished. They untangled themselves and put the sofa between themselves and the new arrivals.

"Harry! Good to see you!" Arthur Weasley said jovially.

"Hello, Mr. Weasley," Harry responded. He made no effort to conceal his grin as he greeted his friends. Ron was there, as well as his older brother Charlie and their mother.

"Mr. And Mrs. Dursley, what a lovely home you have!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed kindly, "So neat and tidy!" Aunt Petunia lifted her nose and gave a decided sniff as she slid further still behind her husband's bulk.

"Well," Mrs. Weasley continued, with a disapproving look at the Dursleys,

"I suppose we might as well get going Harry. The rest of the family can hardly wait to see you!"

Harry smiled and asked, "How are we getting to the Burrow? I can't Apparate yet. I'm not seventeen, like Ron."

Ron seemed to puff up his chest a little at this mention. It wasn't often that he could do something that Harry couldn't.

"Up to you Harry," Mr Weasley said, "Either a side-along apparition or we can rig the fireplace so you can use the Floo network."

Although Harry wasn't fond of the feeling of Apparating, he knew it would be far quicker than setting up the Floo network. He was in a hurry to be rid of Privet Drive and its inhabitants.

"Side-along is fine. I'm ready to go."

"Wonderful!" Mr Weasley beamed, waving his wand as he spoke, "I'll just send your trunks ahead. Harry, if you would, just take hold of my arm."

Harry glanced one final time at his relatives, who were sneaking towards the door to the kitchen. "Good-bye," He called to them. "I don't know when I will see you again or anything, so, good-bye." Harry guessed that one of the Weasleys had shot a threatening look at the Dursleys, because both his aunt and uncle squeaked out a few hurried and insincere good-byes before darting off into the kitchen. With one final glance at the place that he hated so much, he tightened his grip on Arthur Weasley's arm, gave Ron a brilliant smile, and, with a sinking feeling in his stomach, began to Disapparate to the Burrow.

* * *

From the moment Harry and the Weasleys appeared at the front stoop of the Burrow, they were engulfed in a flurry of activity. Though the Burrow was normally a busy place, there were now people running around who would not have normally been present. Ron's brother, Bill, was marrying Fleur Delacour in the garden of the Burrow in only a few days time, and Mrs. Weasley had resolved that it was going to be quite an impressive event. 

Fleur swooped down upon Harry not two minutes after he had arrived."Oh 'Arry!" she fawned, kissing him on the cheek. "I am so glad zat you could make eet! I am so 'appy zat you will be sharing our special day!"

Bill appeared at her side, mirroring her sentiments of welcome. His handsome face still bore the jagged scars from Fenrir Greyback. Bill had fought the werewolf only a few weeks before, when the Death Eaters had attacked Hogwarts. On the night that Dumbledore had been killed.

_By Snape_. Harry thought angrily. _By someone that Dumbledore trusted. But why had Dumbledore trusted him so much? What reason had ever been given to make Dumbledore believe that Snape was really and truly good?_ Harry had asked himself that question hundreds of times in the past weeks.He hadn't been able to think of anything else.

His thoughts were interrupted without warning.

"Ouch!" Harry said, rubbing his arm where Ron had just hit him. "What was that about?"

"Sorry mate," Ron said with a grin, "I was just trying to get your attention is all."

"So," Harry said as he and Ron began the trek up the stairs to Ron's room, "How have things been around here?"

"Oh, fine I guess. Other than the fact of it being a complete madhouse! Honestly, I can't go five minutes without someone asking me where the chairs are going to be set up, or where the floral arrangements will be going, or whether or not the cake is being served with almonds!" Ron was madly waving his arms as he ranted. Harry sat down on the camp-bed that had been set up for him in Ron's bedroom. Hesitating and looking down at his shoes, Harry asked carefully, "And how is... well... how is-"

"Ginny's fine," Ron said kindly. Harry met his friend's eyes and saw a look of genuine concern, "She will be fine. She knows that the fact that you broke up is all for the best. It doesn't mean that she likes it, but she is handling it fairly well."

Harry smiled. "So, when is Hermione arriving?"

Ron turned a slight shade of pink, and then a little green as he said, "Tonight. Around seven, I think. I'm not really sure."

Harry could see that Ron was trying too hard to look casual about Hermione's arrival, and was failing rather miserably. In fact, Ron was looking rather nervous just thinking about their friend. Harry couldn't help himself from saying, "I expect the two of you will be rather glad to see each other."

"What would make you say that?" Ron asked defensively. "It hasn't even been two weeks since I last saw her. There's no reason for me to be so strung up about her being here!" Ron looked slightly ill as he sat silent for a few moments. Harry sat awkwardly on the edge of the cot, staring at the Chudley Cannon posters all over the walls of Ron's room. He didn't know what to say. Harry thought of how he had felt around Ginny just before they had gotten together last year. The way he _still_ felt when he saw Ginny. He still had knots in his stomach and pounding in his chest every time he thought about her. Before the boys had to deal with the awkward silence, Mrs. Weasley shouted up the stairs for the two of them to come and help get the garden ready. Apparently, the large gnome population wasn't going to be invited to the festivities and, therefore, Ron and Harry spent the rest of the afternoon in the yard flinging gnomes over the newly painted fence.

* * *

"Oh, is ickle Ronniekins nervous about his little girlfriend coming?" George was having a wonderful time taunting his younger brother. While Harry felt quite sorry for Ron, he couldn't help but think that Ron was giving his brothers a lot of material to work with. Ron kept smoothing his hair and straightening his shirt, and moving around the kitchen from chair to chair. 

"Poor little Ronnie!" Fred whispered so that their mother wouldn't hear, "So scared to see his-"

Fred didn't get time to finish his remark. Mrs. Weasley came swooping down on the twins with the intensity of a mother hawk, "Now you leave him alone!" She screeched. "If I hear one more word on the subject, I will see to it that you two are removed from the guest list at the wedding!" The twins giggled girlishly and made swooning motions at Ron as they backed out of the room, their mother glaring after them. "Really Ron," Mrs. Weasley muttered to her youngest son. "It isn't as if you have never seen her before. For Merlin's sake she's--,"

"--Here," Harry finished as Hermione came walking through the kitchen door. Fred and George were at her heels, looking expectantly from her to Ron. Hermione gave both Harry and Mrs. Weasley warm hugs before turning to Ron. She threw her arms around him and Ron awkwardly hugged her back. When they separated both had large smiles on their faces, and Ron was looking a little dizzy.

* * *

That night, long after everyone else had gone to bed, Harry sat in the kitchen, an untouched cup of tea on the table in front of him. His thoughts wandered as a summer breeze came through the curtains 

"Harry?" A voice said from the doorway of the kitchen. "Harry, what are you still doing awake at this hour?" The voice belonged to his former teacher, Remus Lupin.

"I couldn't sleep," Harry replied, "I haven't been able to sleep well since-"

He didn't have to finish his sentence. Lupin nodded knowingly. Harry noticed that Lupin was looking better than he had in all the years Harry had known him. He guessed that it had something to do with the fact that Lupin and fellow Order of the Phoenix member, Nymphadora Tonks were madly in love. Lupin's robes were new and clean, his face had filled out a little. All in all, he just looked happier.

"Are you alright Harry? You can't be afraid to ask for help in all of this you know. There are so many people who would come to your aid in a heartbeat." Lupin said softly. He added with a smile, "Most of which are all in this house at this very moment."

"I know," Harry replied, "And I know I will need their help. Right now all I can think about is destroying Voldemort. And I want Snape dead."

Lupin and Harry sat in silence for a moment. Harry took a sip of his tea, only to find that it had gone cold. He sat it down and said to Lupin, "I need to know everything about him. I need to know how he thinks, and who he knows. If I can learn about his past maybe I can understand all of this, and I can catch him."

Lupin didn't speak right away, and when he finally did it was in a voice that was both cautionary and sad. "I have something that could help you. I expected that this would be coming."

Lupin got up and left the room without explanation, leaving Harry quite confused. He returned a moment later with a familiar object in his hands. It was the Pensieve. Harry had never known it to be outside of Hogwarts. He had first stumbled across it in Dumbledore's office in his fourth year. Since then, he had fallen into the memories that the basin held many times.

"I retrieved this from Hogwarts just before I arrived here at the Burrow." Lupin explained, gesturing towards the Pensieve, "You are right Harry. I think that it's time for you to learn more about Snape. I have here a memory of him from when Snape and I were at Hogwarts. I think that it will be a good start in understanding how Snape thinks. I have known him both as a boy, and as a man. As a boy he seemed unable to resist those more powerful than himself, and as we now know, he hasn't changed much.

"I'm not proud of this memory, Harry," Lupin admitted, pouring a silvery memory into the basin from a small glass vial, "But I think it will help." Harry nodded and descended into the mist of the memory in the Pensieve below.

A teenaged Remus Lupin walked down the corridors of the Hogwarts Express, silently acknowledging his classmates in an effort to live up to the shiny Prefect badge pinned to his worn robes. It was his last year at Hogwarts and Remus seemed determined to prove himself. A flock of first-year girls that could have been destined for Hufflepuff were crowding the corridor ahead of him, making noises of protest. Harry looked around and saw a familiar head of greasy black hair just beyond the squealing girls. Snape was standing behind a young Lucius Malfoy, a vicious expression on his sallow face. Even as a teenager, Snape had an expression of perpetual disdain plastered across his face. Malfoy had a trembling boy in Ravenclaw colors at the end of his wand and looked ready to cast a particularly nasty hex.

"Malfoy, I wouldn't try that if I were you. You know you can't cast hexes here. It's against the rules," Remus stated, reprovingly.

Lucius merely smiled and gestured Remus away with a wave of his hand. "I know. I wasn't going to. Snape, finish this for me, would you?" Malfoy sauntered away, his gang of Slytherins trailing devotedly behind. For a brief moment, the shock of having been abandoned flashed across Snape's face, but an instant later, his inky eyes returned to their former glow of malice.

"Friends left you, have they, Severus? I'm not surprised. You let them walk all over you. They leave you here even when they know you don't have the mettle to finish it." Harry looked questioningly at the younger version of Lupin. Why was Lupin taunting him? It only seemed to egg him on. It seemed very unlike the mild-mannered Lupin to be teasing so openly.

"Furnunculus," Snape calmly stated, causing the terrified Ravenclaw to erupt in boils. "Don't you dare accuse me of not fitting in. You don't want your trouble-making friends to think you're a prude, do you Lupin?" Snape hissed in Lupin's ear. "You won't turn me in, will you? You just want to want to fit in. Fool." Snape walked away, triumphant. Lupin looked at him one more time, an unreadable look on his face before he bent down to tend to the young boy that had been hit by Snape's spell. As he did this, the memory began to fade out.

Harry landed back in the kitchen. Lupin looked properly ashamed. The cool night breeze blew through the flowery curtains of the kitchen, and they sat in silence.

"I never did turn him in for that little incident, Harry. He was right. I did want to fit in. But so did he. He would have done anything to fit in and be liked by Malfoy and his goons. I hope this helped a bit." Lupin got up from his chair.

"Wait," Harry said impatiently, "What do I do next? I can't leave it at this. If I can do anything, I need to do it. I need to know where to look for other people who might have memories of Snape. Do you know of anyone?"

Lupin stopped and looked thoughtful. "I think I know someone. I'll need to talk to Tonks first though. You'll have to be ready to go at a moment's notice, Harry. I won't give you any details until I know for certain, but I think, perhaps, we can leave the night of the wedding. We should be able to sneak away without attracting too much attention."

"Who are we going to see?" Harry asked insistently.

"Narcissa Malfoy." Lupin said grimly.

* * *

The next two days passed in a whir of activity. Though everyone else seemed to be completely wrapped up with the wedding activities, Harry couldn't help but think about what he had to do as soon as all the partying was over. It was a rare moment when he wasn't thinking about catching Snape, and destroying each and every Horcrux. Over and over, he replayed the night of Dumbledore's death. Over and over again he saved his wise headmaster in his mind, only to snap back to harsh reality. 

He kept putting off telling Ron and Hermione about Lupin's memory, and the Pensieve. He didn't want to see this happy time interrupted with such dark news. He would be making this journey with only Tonks and Lupin; Ron and Hermione would be staying behind. Harry knew they wouldn't be happy about it, but they would have to understand. Lupin had approached Harry the morning after the Pensieve. He and Tonks had discussed the situation and had begun making plans for the trip to the Malfoy estate. Now all they could do was wait until the time was right.

* * *

The morning of the wedding was as sunny and warm as anyone could have asked for. The garden of the Burrow looked positively magical. There were flowers and fountains all over the grounds, and multicolored bubbles floated gently in the air. 

A few hours before the ceremony, Harry and Ron were just finishing getting dressed in their wedding attire. "How does this tie work?" Ron asked in frustration, fumbling with the piece of fabric

Harry shrugged. He had other things on his mind. He was starting to feel very anxious about retrieving Mrs. Malfoy's memory of Snape.

"Aren't you two ready yet?" Hermione's voice sounded out from the doorway. In response to Hermione's sudden entrance, Ron slammed into the mirror he had been standing in front of. It shattered in its dark wooden frame as it hit the floor. Harry shook his head and said "Reparo," with a wave of his wand. The mirror pieces picked themselves up and fit themselves back together.

"I can't get this stupid thing to tie," Ron said to Hermione, his face very red. She stepped close to him and began to work on the tie.

Harry quietly spoke. "I am going to the Malfoy estate tonight to get a Pensieve memory of Snape from Draco's mother."

Both Ron and Hermione stopped and gaped at Harry. He told them everything that had happened the other night with the Pensieve, and about what he had been thinking lately. Ron was so fascinated by all of this information that he forgot to be nervous around Hermione.

"So when do we leave?" Ron asked when Harry had finished.

"I leave tonight. You two are staying here," Harry answered firmly, "I don't know when exactly we are leaving. I don't know if I will have time to say good-bye so-"

Hermione looked at Harry in fright, "Oh no, Harry. We're coming with you, remember? We are doing this together." Ron nodded in agreement.

"You can't come with this time, Hermione," Harry said, "Tonks and Lupin don't want to take any more people then they have to. Tonks said that her Aunt Narcissa had some kind of personal relationship with Snape, and that we had leverage to get the information with Lucius being in Azkaban." Seeing their worried expressions, he added, "Don't worry. All I have to do tonight is talk. I'm going to need you both with me, I just don't need you for this."

Both Ron and Hermione looked a little put out at Harry's statement, but they understood what he was saying. Hermione finished tying Ron's tie, and then started on Harry's.

"Let's get downstairs. The other guests will start arriving soon." Hermione said.

"What other guests?" Ron asked. "I think every single person that was invited has been here for about a week. This house will explode if we try to fit any more people in it." The three of them laughed and, for a moment, it seemed to Harry just like the good old days. He remembered all of the laughter-filled evenings they had spent in the Gryffindor commons room, and found himself wondering if they would ever have carefree times like those again.

Hermione echoed his thoughts. "This is how it should be. All of us, here together. This is how it _will_ be."

* * *

The ceremony went off without a hitch. Fleur was even more beautiful than usual, which Harry would have found hard to believe if he hadn't been there to see her in person. Long after the ceremony had finished, and the dancing was well underway, Harry sat at a candle-lit table, watching Ron and Hermione swaying together out on the dance floor. The sight of his two best friends so happy made him truly believe that there would be an end to all of this trouble someday. 

"Harry, there you are." It was Tonks with Lupin in tow. Harry noticed that Lupin was carrying the Pensieve with him. "Are you ready?"

"Yeah, I am. I can do this." Harry said.

"Alright then. This is what you need to know before we leave. There was more than one person who thought that Narcissa and Snape had some kind of romantic relationship. I would have been quite young at the time, but I remember hearing stories here and there in the years after. It should be worth a try to find out about their time together. With Lucius in Azkaban, we can perhaps get information out of her if we agree to make his time there a little easier," Tonks looked determined that this mission would be a success.

"Yes," said Lupin. "Perhaps he could use an extra blanket or something. That ought to help make his stay more comfortable. It's far more than he deserves."

"Let's go then," Harry said with another glance at his friends. Ron's chin was resting gently on the top of Hermione's head as they danced. For a moment, Harry pictured him and Ginny in that same situation.

The three of them, Harry, Tonks and Lupin, all in their dress robes, walked hurriedly away from the crowd. When they were out of sight of the other guests, Harry gripped Lupin's arm and, with a small popping noise, they Disapparated to the Malfoy's house.

* * *

Narcissa looked hesitantly around, a sour look on her face. Harry, Lupin and Tonks were sitting with Mrs. Malfoy in a frighteningly elegant parlor. There were portraits of evil looking wizards and witches in opulent frames on the walls. 

"Nymphadora, I hope you realize this has nothing to do with family ties. This better help Lucius."

Tonks nodded coldly, her purple hair ablaze. "Yes, Mrs. Malfoy. We'll take your plea into consideration." She poured Narcissa's memory into Harry's Pensieve, "Okay, Harry. Go ahead." Harry took a breath and dove into the Pensieve.

The dark room was covered in shadows, making it hard for Harry to make out the figures. Narcissa Black was stunning even in the light of a few candles. She could have been mistaken for a Veela. Her hair was the color of spun gold, glistening in the light. Her skin had an almost sickly ethereal glow to it. Like the voice of a siren, her eyes drew Harry in, making him forget about everything for a moment. Until he saw the other figure, sitting in the chair opposite Narcissa. Snape was staring rather fixedly into a glass of firewhiskey, as if the secrets of the world were contained in the amber glass.

"Severus, I need to know."

"Narcissa, you know my allegiance is to the Dark Lord. Why don't you believe me? I have given everything to him and to his cause," Snape brushed off Narcissa's comment. Narcissa looked at him, tears welling in her eyes.

"I loved you, Sev. You loved me too, but your lust for knowledge got in the way. He promised you everything that Hogwarts couldn't. A lab, power, funds. You cultivate this image of the loyal Death Eater, but I know you're not."

"Narcissa, you're drunk. Let me take you home," Severus got up, reaching for her glass. Severus was pulled down to her level by smooth, cold hands. Placing the gentlest of kisses on his lips, Narcissa pulled his forehead to hers.

"No, Severus. I was there to care for you after you got your Dark Mark. I know the true Severus is one who could never kill or hurt anyone unless he had to. I know the side of you that is hidden from the rest of the world. It is for the private side of you, Severus, that I would do anything. I need know where your true loyalties lie."

"Narcissa, you obviously don't know me very well, then. It's good you are getting married off to someone like Malfoy. You're obviously not smart enough to survive on your own." With that, the younger Snape swooped out of the room, leaving a sobbing Narcissa Black behind. Falling back out of the Pensieve, Harry couldn't help but pity Mrs. Malfoy.

"Thank you, Mrs. Malfoy. You have been very helpful. We will see what we can do for your husband."

* * *

The wedding dance was on its last legs by the time Harry returned from the Malfoy's house. Ron and Hermione were no longer dancing, but were sitting rather close to each other, talking. Not wanting to interrupt them, he looked around for another familiar face. He instantly spotted Ginny sitting at a table not ten meters from where he stood. Without thinking, he walked over to her. 

"Ginny would you dance with me?" Harry asked quickly. She stood up and took Harry's hand and let him lead her to the dance floor.

"Where have you been?" she asked softly, as they began to dance. "I've hardly seen you all night."

He told her the whole story. Everything that he had been doing and thinking since the last time they had seen each other. It felt wonderful to have someone so attentive to confide in.

"So, you are just going to collect memories? All so you can catch Snape?" Ginny asked him when he had finished talking.

"For now. I'll find other things to do in the process, I expect."

They were silent for a while, just dancing and enjoying the company. When the band had finished its final song for the night, Harry and Ginny went over to join Ron and Hermione. He told his story over again for them.

"We'll be right there with you Harry," Ron said.

"I know you will," Harry said.

* * *

"Harry! Harry, wake up," Ron's voice shook Harry from a dream. 

"What do you want?" Harry asked crankily. It was very late at night, and it had been a very pleasant dream.

"There's an owl here for you. It won't let me touch the parcel. You must have to take it yourself," Ron explained. Harry got up at once, scrambling for his glasses. His hand brushed the Pensieve on his night stand as he reached for them. It had been two nights since he retrieved Narcissa Malfoy's memory. He was still at the Burrow with his friends, waiting to receive information from Lupin about another possible lead in finding a memory. Harry hurriedly pulled the small package away from the barn owl that carried it. The second he held it in his hand he knew what it was.

"Go get Hermione," Harry told Ron.

Ron didn't hesitate. He bounded as quietly as possible toward Ginny's room, where Hermione was sleeping. Harry had the memory in the Pensieve by the time Ron and

Hermione returned. There had been a small note wrapped around the bottle. It read:

Dear Harry,

This is a memory left by Dumbledore. I came across it and I think he would have wanted you to see.

-L

"Are you ready?" Harry asked his friends. Neither of them had ever used the Pensieve before. They looked nervously at him, not knowing what to expect. Although Harry was quite familiar with the Pensieve, he had no idea what to expect from this memory. There had been no explanation of the memory enclosed in the package. He would have to find out for himself.

Harry landed next to Ron and Hermione in a very familiar room. It was Dumbledore's office. This was Dumbledore in his prime. The headmaster of Hogwarts sat behind his heavy wooden desk, listening to the gentle crooning of Fawkes. Harry had to fight back tears. The thought of Dumbledore being no more than a memory pained him. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Hermione wiping away a tear of her own. A substitute father and mentor, Dumbledore had been a powerful force in Harry's life.

The door of the office opened, drawing Harry's gaze. A subdued, younger Snape crept hesitantly through.

"Good evening, Headmaster," the silken tones of Snape's voice drifted through the office.

"Severus, my boy, I trust you are ready to begin your Illustrious career as Potions master?" Dumbledore inquired in his genteel way.

"Headmaster-"

"Albus. We are colleagues now."

"Albus, then," Snape continued, "I must ask you this. I hope you do not take offense. How is it that you seem to trust me so completely when so few others do? You know fully well my past."

Dumbledore sighed. A cryptic smile passed over his face, as if he knew something particularly fascinating. Pausing a moment to collect his thoughts, he continued hesitantly, "because there are more things in this world than can be explained. Not everything has a reason. I would trust you with my life, Severus, but I can't for the life of me tell you why." Harry backed into the wall in disbelief. Snape looked into his lap.

"Thank you, Albus. I don't deserve your trust, but I appreciate it more than you could know."

The memory faded, and Harry fell back out of the Pensieve, his friends following quickly after. All three of them stared numbly at the Pensieve's swirling depths. Harry felt emptier than he had felt before. A shiver ran through him as if a Dementor had just passed by.

Finally Ron broke the stunned silence, angrily spluttering broken fragments, "That git. I can't...I can't even. After all, Dumbledore... How could he?"

"Harry," Hermione said, "Harry, are you alright?" Harry felt as if he couldn't move. His blood was running cold, his anger was indescribable. He had never wanted vengeance more in his life. Not even at Voldemort for killing his parents. While Voldemort had been up front about being evil, Snape was a lying, treacherous monster. Dumbledore had told Snape that he had trusted him and, after all of that, Snape had still murdered him in cold blood.

"I need to get out of here," Harry muttered as he struggled to get up from the floor. Hermione shouted something to him as he left. He had reached the top of the stairs and couldn't hear what she had called to him.

Suddenly, Harry heard the voice of a memory in his head, speaking to him as calmly and rationally as it had in life. He could suddenly remember Dumbledore saying to him way back in his second year at Hogwarts, "It is our choices, Harry, that show us what we truly are, far more than our abilities." That voice echoed in his head over and over again until he found that he needed to sit down for the force of it.

_Our choices?_ Thought Harry. _Our choices? Snape made the decision to kill Dumbledore just like I am making the decision to find and kill Snape. But I am not like him. Right? _Harry argued with himself on the landing, not even noticing that Hermione and Ron were behind him. _I have the ability, but do I want to make that choice? Do I want to be a killer? No, of course not._ Harry was vaguely aware that his friends were talking, but he wasn't listening to what they were saying. He was too busy fighting with himself, trying to interpret Dumbledore's advice. Harry knew that Dumbledore had trained with him all of last year for a reason. He knew that the headmaster had wanted Harry to be able to go after Voldemort and his Horcruxes. _Isn't that what I should be doing? Isn't that what Dumbledore wanted me to do, trained me to do? Gave me the ability to do?_ It was, and Harry understood everything now. Snape had done something unforgivable, and should be punished for it, but that wasn't Harry's job. Dumbledore had given him tasks to complete and, for a time, Harry had lost sight of that.

"The Horcruxes." Harry finally managed to say. "I need to destroy the Horcruxes. Snape needs to be brought to justice, but that isn't what I should be trying to do. If I come across him in my hunt for the Horcruxes, then so be it. But until then, I am not going to waste my energy on him. He isn't worth it."

Ron and Hermione sagged down on the landing next to him. "I thought you had lost it mate." Ron said. "I thought you were completely off your rocker." On the other side of Harry, Hermione nodded in agreement.

"It was frightening Harry. You weren't yourself." she added.

"No," Harry agreed. "I haven't been for quite a while. But I am now. Now I know. I have a plan, and I want you both with me." As the sun rose over the Burrow, Harry sighed in contentment. Yes, everything had changed. Their lives would continue to be a kaleidoscope of changes, but for this one perfect moment, he had his friends and all was perfect in the world.

25


End file.
